10 best travel pushchairs for jet-setting families, tried and tested

Score: 92/100

Neat, stylish and compact, the Bugaboo Butterfly 2 topped our travel pushchair test with its impressive super-fast fold and unfold function – simply press two buttons, and it folds, clicks, and stands on its own. With a carry handle, shoulder strap, lightweight recycled aluminium frame, and roomy 8kg basket, it’s both practical and more eco-friendly.

Suitable from birth in the lie-flat position, it features a recline, adjustable leg rest, and comfy padded seat. You can also pair with the Bugaboo Turtle Air by Nuna car seat. While it excels on smooth surfaces and corners, the single-height handle may not suit taller parents, and it struggles on rough terrain – something to bear in mind when booking baby’s first city break.

Score: 91/100

Great for at home and away, this pushchair features a lie-flat seat, car seat compatibility, and an innovative fold. It’s easy to manoeuvre one-handed, making it ideal for navigating busy spaces like airports. Folding and unfolding is straightforward with practice, and its compact fold includes a pull-along bumper bar.

Accessories such as a foot muff, snack tray, and phone holder are available, and it comes in three shades; black, cinnamon or mineral (blue). The UPF50+ hood includes a sun visor and mesh ventilation panel, and it's made from recycled bottles, making it a more sustainable, functional choice for families on the go.

Score: 88/100

The Joolz AER+ is an excellent choice for both holidays and everyday use. Available in seven colours, it features quality fabrics and a convenient one-hand fold – ideal if you’re holding baby.

Compatible with a carrycot and car seat, it fits in plane overhead lockers and comes with a travel bag and rain cover. The well-padded, forward-facing seat is a good size to take your child from birth to four years, and it lays flat, so newborns will be comfortable and well-supported. We found the zipped panel recline a bit fiddly, and the non-adjustable handle may not suit taller parents. However, the UPF 50+ canopy is generously sized, and there’s a small shopping basket that holds up to 5kg. Front swivel wheels mean this is a smooth ride, though their small size means this one is better suited to smooth pavements.

Since testing, the Joolz Aer2 Pushchair (£439) has been released, which we’re excited to get into the lab soon.

Score: 88/100

Jet-setting families will love iCandy’s latest lightweight model. It weighs just 7kg, with a smooth one-hand fold and cabin-approved dimensions.

Despite its compact size, the lay-flat seat is spacious enough for older children (up to around five years), while also being suitable for newborns. The shopping basket is a whopper, holding up to 10kg, while the canopy features an extending and ventilated panel – ideal for warmer climates.

Available in five colours (with pleasing pops of neon on the limestone), the stroller folds neatly for easy transport, featuring both a shoulder and carry strap. The wheels are small but the front ones swivel for extra agility, getting you around tight corners faster than a Border Collie at Crufts.

With its flip-flop-friendly brake and high handlebars, the Pip comes ready to use straight out of the box and is packed with thoughtful features.

Score: 88/100

This lightweight stroller has small wheels and is easy to move around corners and in shops, but like others, didn’t tackle tougher terrain as well.

It’s suitable from six months but can be used from birth if purchased as a newborn pack or you can buy the more structured bassinet in addition to the frame. It folds quickly, can fit in an overhead locker, and has a shoulder strap. It comes with a storage bag too, making it a good portable option.

Score: 87/100

Ergobaby’s Metro 3 has had a little nip and tuck from the previous model, making it even better than before. It’s fairly lightweight, and small enough for a plane's locker, yet has a generous, well-padded seat and lots of great features, giving parents the best of both worlds.

You can push and fold this with one hand, and unlike many tiny travel strollers, there is an adjustable handle – which comes in useful when one parent is taller than the other. We were impressed with the suspension, which will give you a helping hand over rough terrain, and while the front swivel wheels are small, the rear ones are larger to provide a smoother ride.

Suitable from birth, the comfortable seat reclines nearly flat and can also be used with several brands of car seat with adaptors. The ventilated canopy offers good coverage, there’s a rain cover included in the box, and you get 2.2kg of under-seat storage, with an additional 1.4kg seat storage pocket. The brake is easy to engage, though releasing it might bruise your toes!

Score: 81/100

If you find yourself nipping in and out of shops on holiday (those Lays won’t buy themselves) this narrow stroller is ideal. Note, however, that this slim design may not have as much longevity for older children, who will likely outgrow it before the recommended upper limit of four years.

The forward-facing seat can be paired with a car seat for a parent-facing solution, and its near-flat recline makes it suitable from birth. The compact one-hand fold is particularly impressive, fitting neatly into a plane's overhead locker.

The shopping basket is compact, but a second, smaller basket above it creates two-tier storage – perfect for stashing small items on top and a changing bag at the bottom. Like many others, the handle has a fixed height, but the position should be comfortable for taller parents. The wheels are small and hard, so despite the suspension in the chassis, expect a bumpy ride over all but the smoothest of surfaces.

Score: 80/100

Holidays are expensive enough, without having to factor in a travel stroller, so the Didofy gets our vote as the best value option. Not only is it well-priced but it comes with useful accessories, such as a rain cover and cup holder.

The ‘magic’ one-handed folding mechanism is impressive, and a quick flick opens it back up from its neat little package. With a grab handle and carry strap, you’ll find it lightweight and easy to carry (even if you’re wrangling baby at the same time).

The front-facing Aster can be used from birth, with an almost lie-flat ventilated seat, though you’ll need to add a car seat if you prefer a parent-facing option. A slight niggle was the hard handlebar, which was a little tough to push after a while, and can’t be adjusted, although the stroller can be pushed with one hand.

Puncture-proof wheels are a plus, with city break-friendly swivel wheels and a flip-flop suitable brake. You might need to streamline your stuff though – the basket only holds 2.5kg, and though there is another storage pocket on the back of the seat, it's long and deep, making it quite difficult to get smaller things out.

Score: 80/100

This is one of the smallest folding strollers on the market, featuring an innovative compact concertina system. It does require two hands to fold and it doesn't have a carry handle, but it is the lightest model we've tested.

There's also a range of fashionable colours to choose from, and the covers are machine washable. Add a car seat to make it suitable from birth or use from six months up to around four years. We’d only recommend it for occasional use though, as the seat doesn't recline easily and is a little uncomfortable for very young babies.

It glides effortlessly around corners, performing well on smooth surfaces, but as you expect from the small wheels, it's less impressive on grass and sand. The unusual position of the handle can’t be adjusted, but once you get used to it, it's very easy to steer.

Score: 75/100

This is an innovative product that’s ideal for travelling. It’s essentially a car seat that converts into a stroller, making it super convenient for all stages of your holiday. We've also tested it as a car seat where it scored an impressive 77/100 (head to our best car seat roundup for more details).

It has three recline positions, including a full recline feature for cosy snoozing, as well as an adjustable headrest and a padded harness and handle. The fabrics are breathable and can be removed for washing.

It's rear-facing and only suitable for little ones up to 13kg, but if you need a smart solution to take you to the airport, into the hire car and beyond, this may be the answer.

Watch out for new colours launching later this year – we love the seasonal Slate Green and Terracotta.